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Battle Royale

Play trailer 0:30 Poster for Battle Royale 2000 1h 54m Mystery & Thriller Action Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
92% Tomatometer 50 Reviews 88% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
42 9th graders are sent to a deserted island. They are given a map, food, and various weapons. An explosive collar is fitted around their neck. If they break a rule, the collar explodes. Their mission: kill each other and be the last one standing. The last survivor is allowed to leave the island. If there is more than one survivor, the collars explode and kill them all.
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Battle Royale

Battle Royale

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Critics Consensus

Battle Royale is a controversial and violent parable of adolescence, heightening teenage melodrama with life-or-death stakes.

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Critics Reviews

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Sara Stewart New York Post May 25, 2012
3/4
Stylistically it's a beauty, with khaki-uniformed waifs fighting for their lives to a crashing classical score. Go to Full Review A.O. Scott New York Times May 24, 2012
3.5/5
Awful deaths (and hysterical reactions to them) punctuate declarations of love and friendship, revelations of treachery and heavily armed expressions of angst. Go to Full Review Joshua Rothkopf Time Out May 22, 2012
4/5
Forgive the film its small flaws of histrionic performances and cheap execution for the giddy rush of its banal, Verhoevenesque atmosphere... Go to Full Review Gregory Nussen Screen Rant Oct 13, 2025
9/10
Kinji Fukasaku's dystopian high school-set murder spree is more prescient than ever. Go to Full Review Panos Kotzathanasis Asian Movie Pulse Mar 3, 2024
8
Battle Royale” stands as a definite cult movie, from Takeshi Kitano's presence to the way it inspired Tarantino, to the violent portrayal of youth and sociopolitical criticism unfolds against a backdrop of dark humor and an evocative soundtrack. Go to Full Review Javier G. Trigales Espinof Nov 27, 2023
3/5
The "groundbreaking" premise of Battle Royale remains a good black comedy diversion that's more conventional than some wanted it to be. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Mariann F @MariannK Oct 12, 2026 no. horrible. i hated it. i thought it was very disturbing, intense, and just horrible. it is def not a movie for everyone because of the violence but it does have deepr meaning beyond the fact that people are just fighting each other. it made me question human nature, trust and what survival really means and is. id recomend it to people who enjoy dark movies but if you dont, dont even bother to waste your time. cause my time was defintely wasted See more Valeria R @LavenderValerian Sep 25, 2026 It was a fun watch interesting movie if you are a hunger games fan would recommend watching it to see where she got the idea from. See more David B. @RT14283473 Jul 7, 2026 Not much of a story, kinda boring with mediocre acting. See more Precious E @RT11040780 May 19, 2026 After watching Battle Royal, in my opinion, I did not like this movie just because I am not a big fan of the genre of thriller and mystery. The movie seemed very creepy, like there were plot twists. See more Jaden G @RT57257977 May 18, 2026 It was very gory and bloody but did a good job at capturing a dark feeling and did have me on my toes during multiple moments. I think it was good at capturing the horror aspect that it wanted to revolve around for sure. See more Dominick S @Dominick118 May 17, 2026 The performances feel intense and believable, helping the audience connect with the characters despite the large cast. The film also delivers strong social commentary about authority, youth culture, and the pressure placed on students. See more Read all reviews
Battle Royale

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Cast & Crew

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Kinji Fukasaku

Director

Tatsuya Fujiwara

Shuya Nanahara - Boys #15

Aki Maeda

Noriko Nakagawa - Girls #15

Taro Yamamoto

Shougo Kawada - Boys #5

Masanobu Andô

Kazuo Kiriyama - Boys #6

Ko Shibasaki

Mitsuko Souma - Girls #11

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Battle Royale

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Battle Royale

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Movie Info

Synopsis 42 9th graders are sent to a deserted island. They are given a map, food, and various weapons. An explosive collar is fitted around their neck. If they break a rule, the collar explodes. Their mission: kill each other and be the last one standing. The last survivor is allowed to leave the island. If there is more than one survivor, the collars explode and kill them all.
Director
Kinji Fukasaku
Producer
Akio Kamatani, Tetsu Kayama, Masumi Okada, Masao Sato, Kenta Fukasaku, Kinji Fukasaku, Kimio Kataoka, Toshio Nabeshima, Chie Kobayashi
Screenwriter
Kenta Fukasaku
Production Co
WOWOW, Toei Company, AM Associates, MF Pictures, GAGA, Kobi Co., Battle Royale Prod. Committee, Toho Company, Nippon Shuppan Hanbai (Nippan) K.K.
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Action, Comedy
Original Language
Japanese
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 16, 2000, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Oct 12, 2025
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 30, 2016
Runtime
1h 54m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
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